My 2009 book list looks like the New York Times bestseller list. I guess that all those readers can’t be wrong.  How agreeable is that? I read a lot!  If you have the least inclination to read books in the business genre (with generous boundaries…) these are my  top six recommendations:

Barbara Ehrenreich – Bright-Sided (How Relentless Promotion of Positive Thinking has Undermined America)
I am so sick of The Law of Attraction that I can scream. That’s why, I not only bought the book,  but soaked up every irreverent word.  From The Secret, to Mega churches to the National Speakers Association, no one is sacred. This is a brilliant deconstruct of our financial industry’s failure as well. Bless you Barbara.

Levitt and Dubner- Freakonomics
These guys are the rock stars of Behavioral Economics. Entertaining as heck and a great intro to this seemingly new science. They are describing experiments they’ve done that lead to conclusions about work, cheating and the people behind crimes. I still have “Super Freakonomics” their second book on deck to read. I hear it is just as entertaining.

Dan Ariely – Predictably Irrational
More Behavioral Economics. Ariely touched me more deeply than the authors of Freakonmics because he discusses the behavior of accountability. He proves that do better when we have an authority figure telling us what and when to accomplish. But suggests, as do my clients, that while having an authority figure may be more effective, a blend of authority and free will is best. He also does an informative bit about the irrationality of marketing that gave me more marketing ideas than any one else all year.  Except….

Chris Anderson- Free
Like Thomas Friedman before him, this new tome is a technical analysis, appropriately told in terms even I can understand, of how the internet, digital technology and marketing have truly changed in the last few years. I learned a dozen things to immediately implement in order to not only stay cutting edge but to be politically correct in advancing business initiatives.

Patrick Lencioni – Three Signs of a Miserable Job ( A Fable for Managers)
Lencioni always has a way to take complicated subjects and distill their simple parts as a story. This is a quick ditti that packs a lot of punch. What do people want from their work? We want to be recognized. We want to know that what we do matters. And we want it measured. I agree! If we can practice this everyday we can all be successful.

Thomas Friedman – The World is Flat; A Brief History of the 21st Century (updated and expanded)
Friedman updated this tome in 2006 and still it is a must read for anyone who wants to understand why the world has changed. If you haven’t read this yet, get a new understanding of technology,  “the Triple Convergence”, free trade and globalization. You may not agree with Friedman’s conclusions, but the history lesson is important. You must be dedicated to reading this but the payoff is immense. I had no less than 10 aha moments.

My top picks for 2008

I’m reading the new Fast Company Magazine – an article about Hulu and I am disarmed by these lines in the first page;

“Imagine that The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal had gotten together and created Google News. Or that Sony Music and Warner Music Group had introduced iTunes. That’s Hulu, a daring attempt by would-be victims of the digital revolution, NBC Universal and News Corp., the parent company of Fox, to control their content — and their fates.”

Someone save me. Its been said out loud! What was wrong with Sony and WEA that they didn’t do this 10 years ago and handed their fate into the hands of the computer industry?  Even when I sat at the independent content provider intro to itunes in 1996 in Cupertino, I wondered why they allowed this to happen. I also was thrilled that someone- anyone – picked up the gauntlet and moved the industry out of inertia even if for a short time. Apple didn’t solve the music industry’s problems but they did pull us along with them. And now, Hulu with their benefactors at NBC and Fox are an example of facing change head on. Shame on the music industry. You still embarrass me, years after my exit. Way to go.

In this same copy of Fast Company, The Heath Brothers write an article on looking out of your box to solve problems.  It is the same thought as the Hulu article- thanks guys for saying it:

“The biggest barrier to the idea hunt, in fact, may be you. It may never occur to you to start searching because we all commonly keep our thinking penned up within our company or industry.”

Audio CD presentations with workbooks: $15 each or all 5 for $50. Go to the HPA Shop for more info.

•    Three high payoff activities guaranteed to grow your business.

•    Products Don’t Sell and Neither Should You

•    Do What you’ve Never Done before: Creative Problem Solving

•    People Don’t want to be manageD

•    Empowering Employees: From Good to Great

I am a voracious reader who is making an enormous life switch from fiction to nonfiction which makes up this list. If you haven’t read any of these, check them out. They are great.

If you are a business coaching client or TAB member, these books are available directly from me for loan.   If you don’t want to wait, you can link directly to Amazon.  Bon Apetit.

Outliers: The Story of Success

Malcolm Gladwell

Along with the rest of the planet, I like all of his books. I love the way that Malcolm can take long scholarly texts and present their meanings in language that I understand. What did I learn? Getting good at stuff is about practice. practice, practice. It is the same ol’ message with more data. If you were looking for a shortcut, it isn’t here.

The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich

Timothy Ferriss

One thing I loved: Outsource,baby! This book inspired me to hire assistants and researchers where ever they may be and let them help me create and sell my product better and faster.

Reality Check: The Irreverent Guide to Outsmarting, Outmanaging, and Outmarketing Your Competition

Guy Kawasaki

One thing I loved: The 10/20 Rule. Ten slides in 20 minutes. If you can’t demo your product in that time…. you lose. I have taken this to heart.

A Stake in the Outcome: Building a Culture of Ownership for the Long-Term Success of Your Business – Jack Stack

The Great Game of Business – Jack Stack

The Open-book Experience: Lessons From Over 100 Companies Who Successfully Transformed Themselves – John Case

Six Disciplines® Execution Revolution: Solving the One Business Problem That Makes Solving All Other Problems Easier – Gary Harpst

What Got You Here Won’t Get You There: How Successful People Become Even More Successful – Marshall Goldsmith

One thing I loved: Marshall is a poet who’s theme is “Don’t be an Asshole.” He wins my vote.

Long Tail, The, Revised and Updated Edition: Why the Future of Business is Selling Less of More – Chris Anderson

One thing I loved: This was my life as a distributor in the music business. I could have written this book if only I’d had the insight. Thanks, Chris.

QBQ! The Question Behind the Question: Practicing Personal Accountability in Work and in Life – John G Milller

One thing I loved: This actually helped me be a better salesperson. Sure it is about accountability but simply put, it is about listening.

The Contrarian Effect: Why It Pays (Big) to Take Typical Sales Advice and Do the Opposite – Micheal Port

One thing I loved: Contrariness!  This is a smack on the head that times have changed and we are all information overloaded. It takes some thought about how to develop expertise?  This made me want more than ever to step up my social networking even though I love cold calling and will fight in its favor.

Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us – Seth Godin

Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die – Chip Heath and Dan Heath

Employing Generation Why – Eric Chester

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable – Patrick Lencioni

Taming Your Gremlin (Revised Edition): A Surprisingly Simple Method for Getting Out of Your Own Way – Rick Carson

Diane Dileo gave me a copy of Seth Godin’s Tribes: We Need You to Lead Us” to read. His thesis is that since we are not limited by geography anymore, being a leader is easier than ever as your tribe awaits you. His idea that we are all leaders and that leadership is a behavior that we develop is very motivationally delivered by Godin. Love it.

Here is a poem taken from the end of the book:

“Belief

People don’t believe what you tell them.

They rarely believe what you show them.

They often believe what their friends tell them.

They always believe what they tell themselves.

What leaders do: they give people stories that they can tell themselves. Stories about the future and about change.”